Former Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor usually had his way with the Pittsburgh Steelers back when the two teams met twice a year in the old AFC Central. He was a kryptonite for the Black and Gold, similar to how Rob Gronkowski always went off when New England played the Steelers.
In a Jaguars’ 34-24 Week 6 win over the Steelers in 2000, Taylor rushed for 234 yards on 30 carries (7.8 average) and three touchdowns. He also had a receiving touchdown. Taylor’s 234 yards rushing is the most the Steelers have allowed in franchise history in single game.
Taylor rushed for 982 yards on 231 carries (4.2 average) and eight touchdowns (10 overall) in 12 games against the Steelers in his career.
While Taylor was a fierce rival for the Steelers, he has the upmost respect for the organization and the fans. On the latest episode of The Pivot Podcast with rapper and die-hard Steelers fan GloRilla, Taylor admitted that the Steelers have the best fans in the NFL.
“We used to play against the Steelers all the time and I know the Terrible Towels. They are probably the best fan base in the entire league. I can say that and people in Jacksonville are going to kill me, but they know how it goes,” Taylor said.
Taylor’s former franchise felt the wrath of the Terrible Towel last season, as Jacksonville lost their division lead and went 3-6 after safeties Andrew Wingard and Rayshawn Jenkins disrespected the Terrible Towel after a Week 8 win over the Steelers. Ironically, the Steelers made the playoffs with Jacksonville losing to the Tennessee Titans in the regular-season finale.
During a conversation with Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin on The Pivot in 2022, Taylor revealed that he had a desire to sign with either the Steelers or New England Patriots late in his career. The Steelers didn’t express interest, however, and he signed with New England. He joked with Tomlin that he should have called his number.
“I’ve been waiting 14 years for this, 2009, the Jacksonville Jaguars released me, and there was only two teams I wanted to hear from: One was the Patriots and the other one was the Pittsburgh Steelers. Why didn’t you hit me up, boss?” Taylor told Tomlin.